Paintbrush holder and container



May 8, 1956 R. E.,HISS

PAINTBRUSH HOLDER AND CONTAINER Filed Dec. 8, 1952 P/CHARD E. H/SS.

BY Y

g I Agenl.

United States Patent PAINTBRUSH HOLDER AND CONTAINER Richard E. Hiss, Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.

Application December& 1952, Serial No. 324,786 2 Claims. (Cl'.-21 1- 66)' This invention relates generally to holders or supporting devices and particularly to means for holding paint brushes within a storage container with their bristles imthe handles of the brushes may bereadily clamped to the holder. Another object of the invention is to provide a combination container and brush holder for use therein, the container being rel'atively tall, that is, greater than the overin performing its intended function.

mer'sed'in a solution so as to allow settling of paint or 7 similar material from the brushes into the bottom of the container and thus maintain their bristles soft for future 'use.

I The storing of paint brushes following their use has" always presented a problem for the reason that no satisfactory means has heretofore been devised by which the bristles are maintained soft and straight for'future use. It

[is common practice 'to place paint brushes within a pail or can containing a supply of linseed oil or other solution in which the brush bristles are immersed. Since the brushes are supported on their bristles, the latter tend to become set in a bent condition to render the brushes inefficient and difficult to operate. Moreover, when linseed oil is used, its upper surface soon becomes gummy or and from which the brushes are suspended with their lower bristle ends immersed in the paint softening solution.

Such holders are subject to the disadvantage that the depth to which the bristles extend is uncontrolled so that long bristles may rest against the bottom wall of the container.

- It is an object of this invention to obviate the disadvantages and deficiencies of prior paint brush holder devices by providing a holder or support which, when applied to use, is disposed entirely within the container so that the latter may be closed by its cover to seal the interior and thus avoid evaporation or congealing of the softening oil or other liquid. 7

Another object of the invention is to provide a holder, of the character referred to, which is slidable downwardly into the container, the holder having lower feet portions which rest upon the bottom end of the container so as to space the lower ends of the bristles of the suspended brushesat a predetermined distance above said bottom end. By this means, contact of the bristles with 'the con tainer, which might result inbending the bristles, is prevented. A related object is to" provide such a holder having lower and upper bifurcated ends forming resilient legs which frictionally engage the inner surfaces of the container to' retain the holder in erect position;

Another object is to provide a holder, of the class referred to, in'which the upper legs are directed downwardly and have bent portions or feet at their lower ends, said A further object is to provide a holder of the'type indicated which has a cross-bar intermediate its ends, said bar carrying a plurality of U-shaped spring clips by which Further objects of the invention will appear from the following descriptio'nand from the drawing which is intended for the purpose 'of illustration only, and in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view through a container, showing my holder device applied to use in suspending paint brushes in position to immerse their bristles within an oil or other liquid in the bottom of the container;

a Fig. 2 across-sectional View, taken on line 2'2 of F g Fig. 3'is a perspective view of the holder device; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the means for mounting the container against a wall, taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

' Referring to the drawing in detail, the present improved brush holder 5 is shown as applied to use in connection with a metal container 6 having a bottom wall 7 and a cylindrical wall 8. The upper end of the wall 8 is folded inwardly to provide a flange 9 having a depression 10 for receiving and clamping the lip 12 of a cover 13,- the cover thus being held in place to close v the upper end of the container and being removable vby prying it upwardly in the usual manner.

The container 6 resembles an ordinarypaint can but is elongated considerably to accommodate the holder device 5. A conventional handle 'or bail 14 is provided by which the container may be carried. In accordance with the present invention, the container 6 also has a tab 15 welded to its side, adjacent its upper end, the tab having a keyshaped opening 16 by which the container may be suspended from a nail 17, or the like, fastened to awall 18.

The holder device 5 includes'an upper portion 20 having a central stem 21 and oppositely directed arms 22 at the upper end of the stern; Extending downwardly vfrom; the outer ends of the arms 22 are curved, resilient upper legs 23 having loop-like upper feet 24. As herein illustrated, the upper portion 20 may be made, for example, from a pair of wires twisted together to form the stem 21.

Welded to the lower end of the stem 21 is a transverse bar 25 which is of a length somewhat less than the inner diameter of the container 6. Welded. orotherwise selower legs 27 are curved and diverge outwardly, the

wireat their lower ends being curved outwardly and upwardly to provide lower loop-like feet '28.

Attached to the sides of the cross-bar 25, as by spot welding, are resilient holding or clamping elements 30 which cooperate in defining between them openings 31 for receiving the handles 32 of paint brushes 33, the

elements yielding laterally to allow the handles to be snapped into place and to be retained on the holder with their bristles 34 lowermost.

Assuming that the holder 20 is disposed within the container 6 as shown by full lines in Fig. 1 and that one or more paint brushes 33 havebeen used and are to be stored away for future use, their bristles 34 are first cleaned by dipping them in paint thinner, turpentine or other paint softening solution to remove the paint present on the end portions of the bristles. A quantity of oil or other liquid L is poured into the container. The brushes 33 are placed on the holder 20, this being accomplished by snapping the handles 32 into the clamping elements 30 while the holder is in the position indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 1 with its feet 24 resting upon the flange 9. The brushes 33 thus are held by the spring clamps with their bristle ends depending from the cross-bar 25.

The holder is now lowered into the container 6 to the position shown by the full lines in Fig. 1 with the legs 27 flexing outwardly to cause the feet 28 to slide downwardly along the inner cylindrical surface of the container. It is, of course necessary to force the upper legs 23 toward each other to adapt their feet 24 to enter the container. Eventually, the lower feet 28 engage the bottom surface 7 of the container, at which time the entire holder is disposed within the container, that is, below the flange 9. The vertical distance between the feet 28 and the cross-bar 25 is such that the brush bristles are submerged in the liquid L with the lower ends of the bristles spaced above the bottom 7 of the container. Thus, the bristles are maintained above the paint which settles from the root portions of the bristles and accumulates in the bottom of the container, as indicated at P, and the possibility of the bristles becoming bent is effectively avoided. It is to be noted by reference to Fig. 1 that the feet 28 and 24 of the lower and upper legs 27 and 23 frictionally engage the interior of the container 6 so as to maintain the holder and brushes in erect position.

Following lowering of the holder 5, the cover 13 is pressed down onto the flange 9 so as to close the container and thus minimize evaporation of the oil or other liquid and to prevent the entrance of air which would tend to congeal the viscous liquid L. The container may be stored in any desired location but I have found that it will be less apt to become upset if hung against a wall. To mount the container upon a wall, the tab 15 is simply hooked over a nail or screw 17 projecting from the Wall.

When it is desired to again use one or more of the brushes 33, the cover or lid 13 is first removed, after which the arms'22 are grasped in a hand and the holder slid upwardly. During this movement, the legs 23 are flexed inwardly by the flange 9 and when the feet 24 clear the flange the legs spring outwardly to cause the feet to rest upon the flange so as to support the holder 20 in the partly elevated position indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 1. At this time the brush bristles 34 are located above the liquid L so that the liquid may drain therefrom, and the brush handles 32 are exposed at the top of the container so that they may be readily removed from the clamping elements 30. Upon removing the brush or brushes, the holder is again lowered to the position illustrated by full lines in Fig. 1 and the cover 13 replaced. After the brushes have served their purpose, they may again be placed on the holder 20 by removing the cover 13, elevating the holder, clamping the brushes to the cross-bar 25, sliding the holder downwardly and finally placing the cover 13 on the container to seal the same.

It will be observed from the foregoing that my invention provides a highly practical device for suspending the bristles of paint brushes in an oil or other brush-conditioning liquid so as to avoid congealing of paint and the like between the bristles. As a feature of the invention, the holder device and the container are so proportioned in height that the holder and brush handles are located entirely within the container. By this provision, the upper end of the container may be closed by a cover to avoid evaporation of its liquid content and to avoid spilling of the liquid in the event that the container is inadvertently upset. As another feature the holder has vertically-spaced pairs of resilient legs which frictionally engage the sides of the container to maintain the holder in upright position.

Another important advantage of the present improved holder is that the cross-bar is so located relative to the lower feet that the brush bristles are submerged in the liquid but are prevented from engaging the bottom of the container. Consequently, an effective settling of the paint from the root portions of the bristles is attained and bending of the bristles is avoided. As a further feature, the holder may be partly withdrawn from the container to elevate the brushes above the level of the liquid so that the liquid may drain from the bristles. Moreover, elevation of the holder raises the brush handles to a level where they are readily accessible so that removal of the brushes from the holder is facilitated.

It is well known that when cleaning a brush, it is difiicult to remove paint from the root portions of the bristles. By the use of the present device it is unnecessary to remove all of the paint from the root portions prior to storage because when the bristles are suspended in a light-bodied liquid, the paint remaining in the brush will settle to the bottom of the container, leaving the brush clean for future use.

It is to be noted that the brush holder device is extremely simple in construction so that it may be manufactured at a relatively low cost, the device further being light in weight, yet sturdy and durable in use.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I have herein disclosed what I now consider to represent the best embodiment of the invention but I wish it to be understood, however, that the device shown is only illustrative and that the invention may be carried out by modified means.

I claim as my invention:

1. A brush holder adapted for use in connection with a container containing liquid, comprising: a one-piece cross-bar adapted to extend transversely within the container; longitudinally-spaced spring clip means on said bar for clamping the handles of paint brushes with the bristles of the brushes extending downwardly therefrom; a vertical stem projecting upwardly from said cross-bar; a pair of arms extending laterally outwardly from the upper end of said stem, said arms terminating in downwardly projecting, resilient, outwardly bowed legs having curved feet at their lower ends; and resilient, outwardly bowed legs depending from the ends of said cross-bar and provided with curved feet at their ends, all of said legs being frictionally engageable with the sides of the container so as to maintain the holder in erect position, the feet of the legs depending from the cross-bar being engageable with the bottom of the container to so locate the cross-bar relative to the bottom of the container that the ends of the brush bristles are spaced above said bottom of the container.

2. A brush holder as defined in claim 1 in which said stem consists of a pair of wires twisted together, the lower ends of said wires being connected to said crossbar intermediate its ends, and the upper ends of said wires providing said arms.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 351,208 Searles Oct. 19, 1886 557,112 Covel Mar. 31, 1896 2,127,682 Ewing Aug. 23, 1938 2,278,650 Drinkwater Apr. 7, 1942 2,468,631 Iauss Apr. 26, 1949 2,498,511 Smith Feb. 21, 1950 2,521,049 Divis Sept. 5, 1950 

